Comparison

FocusStack vs Levity Markdown Notes

Price, ratings, monetisation and update history for both apps, side by side — with what reviewers say about each.

Head to head
About

FocusStack

This app helps you identify and focus on your most important tasks by distinguishing between essential work and distractions. It allows you to rank priorities, track time spent on each task, and offers ambient music to enhance concentration.

Highlights
  • Identify and rank top 3 essential tasks
  • Unlimited backlog for other tasks
  • Drag-and-drop task organization
  • Automatic time tracking per task
  • Ambient music with visual themes
  • Home screen widget for task visibility
  • Basic analytics for focus time
Features
Read full description

What made Steve Jobs so successful? It comes down to one principle: clearly distinguishing between signal and noise. When the Apple team was designing the iPod, the table was full of feature ideas: "Should it have an FM radio? A voice recorder?" Steve Jobs recognized those additions for what they were: noise. They added complexity without strengthening the product's core value. He removed them. The signal was clear and uncompromised: a device that plays music beautifully. The signal is the three to five non-negotiable tasks that drive real results in the near term and move the mission forward. The noise is everything else: unnecessary emails, unproductive meetings, social media, minor fluctuations, and even "opportunities" that don't align with the primary objective. FocusStack helps you identify the signal—your top 3 tasks—and cut the distractions. It's a simple framework for ranking and prioritizing what actually matters. **Pick Your Top 3 (The Signal)** Enter your tasks for the day. Then, review the task list and choose three tasks that actually move the needle. These are your signal—the non-negotiables. Drag them to the top of your tasks to prioritize. Everything else goes in your backlog (the noise). Each task tracks time automatically so you know how long you've been working on what matters. **Music While You Work** Enable do not disturb and move to the focus tab of the app. Ambient lofi music loops and your time is tracked while you focus on each task. Swipe left or right to switch songs—each one changes the background colors. Or just mute it if you prefer silence. Swipe up or down to change the task you are focusing on. Stay on this page as focus time accumulates, preventing mindless checking of other apps. **See What You've Done** Check out the analytics tab to see how much time you've spent focusing today and this week. Look back at completed tasks to see what you actually finished. **Widget** There's a home screen widget that shows your top 3 focus tasks. Handy when you don't want to open the app and keeps your tasks for the day visible on your home screen. After all focus tasks are completed, widget displays a gratifying checkmark. **What It Does:** • Keep track of your top 3 focus tasks • Unlimited tasks in your backlog • Drag and drop to organize • Automatic time tracking per task • Ambient music with visual themes • Home screen widget • Basic analytics (today's time, weekly total) • Lock screen music controls • Swipe to navigate between tasks and songs The goal isn't to be busy; it's to be effective. When you consistently distinguish signal from noise, your energy is directed toward what actually produces tangible outcomes. Identify the signal, cut the distractions, and put your weight behind what truly moves the needle. I built this because I needed something simple. Just tasks and focus time. If that sounds useful to you, give it a try.

About

Levity Markdown Notes

Features
Read full description

Levity is a fast Markdown editor for your own plain-text notes, based on a folder in iCloud Drive or on your device. No account, no proprietary database, no separate sync service to set up. Point Levity at a folder and it mirrors every Markdown file inside it, and keeps mirroring as they change. Built for speed on your phone and read-compatible with Obsidian vaults. Levity opens, scrolls, and searches instantly, even in a large vault. It's tuned for mobile from the first line of code. If you already keep an Obsidian vault, Levity reads it as-is: the same files, the same folders, the same frontmatter. Your notes are just text files. They live in your own iCloud Drive or on your device, sync through your own Apple account, and open in any other editor. A live, clean editor: • Formatting appears as you type. The raw Markdown symbols stay out of your way, while your files stay pure Markdown on disk • Headings, bold, italic, task lists, checkboxes, blockquotes, code blocks, and tables you can edit cell by cell • [[Wiki-links]] between notes, with autocomplete • Inline images • A formatting bar, so you never have to hunt for a raw symbol Organize without a database: • Tag your notes and filter by tag • YAML frontmatter — add any property you like (status, type, dates, lists) and build filtered views around it • Folders, templates, archive, and trash • Full-text search across every note, instantly Made yours: • Seven themes, plus an automatic day / night mode that follows your surroundings • Adjustable font, size, and spacing • Designed for both iPhone and iPad Levity is focused and supports text, tags, and links; no graph view or plugins, just the fastest way to write and read Markdown on iOS, on top of files you already own. Free to start. One optional yearly subscription unlocks unlimited note creation and editing; reading your notes is never limited. Your privacy, by design: your notes stay in your own iCloud or device storage. Levity Premium is an auto-renewing subscription billed yearly. Payment is charged to your Apple Account at confirmation of purchase. The subscription renews automatically unless it is canceled at least 24 hours before the end of the current period. Manage or cancel anytime in your Apple Account settings. Terms of Use: https://www.apple.com/legal/internet-services/itunes/dev/stdeula/

Screenshots

FocusStack4 screens
Levity Markdown Notes4 screens

Verdict

The call

The clearest difference is in-app purchases: FocusStack at none against Levity Markdown Notes's 1. On price, ads, device support and iOS requirement there is nothing between them.

Scored on Price · Rating · Positive reviews · Number of ratings · Update frequency · Ads · In-app purchases · Monetization · Best chart rank · Devices · Requires iOS

CostPrice · In-app purchases · Ads · Monetization

Both are free to download. Levity Markdown Notes sells 1 in-app purchase, starting at $11.99 per year. FocusStack asks for nothing beyond the download.

Scorecard1 real difference · 7 level
FocusStack versus Levity Markdown Notes: the parameters behind the verdict, then further details
ParameterFocusStackLevity Markdown Notes
PriceFreeFree
Rating5.0 (2 ratings) — better—
Number of ratings2 — better—
AdsNoNo
In-app purchasesNo — betterYes
MonetizationFree—
DevicesiPhoneiPhone, iPad — better
Requires iOS17.017.0
Further details — not scored
Size27 MB5 MB
Age rating4+4+
DeveloperMICHAEL FRANCIS MCGOVERNS Tan

In-app purchases

None

FocusStack

No in-app purchases

1 purchases

Levity Markdown Notes

Subscriptions1
  • Levity Premium$11.991 Year

Questions

Is FocusStack free?
FocusStack is free to download, with no in-app purchases.
Is Levity Markdown Notes free?
Levity Markdown Notes is free to download, with in-app purchases available.
Do FocusStack or Levity Markdown Notes have ads?
Neither FocusStack nor Levity Markdown Notes shows ads.

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